Over the Weekend
WP: Orbit Wars
WP: Top Regulatory Posts Remain Unfilled
Universal Service
Telecom AM: Missouri Becomes 30th State to Adopt
FCC's School Universal Service Discount
Telecom AM: Idaho Seeks Comments On How To Make
Universal Service Subsidies Explicit
Capitol Hill & Campaign Finance Reform
B&C: Budget bill brings broadcasters benefits
WP: Encryption: Who Will Hold the Key?
NYT: Arts Funds As Catalyst In Heartland
WP: Congress Can Reform -- Honest
WSJ: FCC May Try to Fix Campaign Financing
NYT: Imagine a Lobbyist Who Won't Play Golf
Old vs. New Media
WP: Even Before Books
NYT: Fast Times at Wired Hit a Speed Bump
Business
NYT: Watch 800 Companies Stuff Themselves Into One Phone Booth
WSJ: On-Line Larceny Prompts Venture To Develop Lucrative New Business
WSJ: With USA Network Up For Grabs, Heat Is on Its Chief
WP: Library Manager LSSI Adds a Calif. System to Its Collection
International
NYT: The Price of Truth
WSJ: Ancient Spanish Town Becomes Infoville
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* Over the weekend *
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Title: Orbit Wars
Source: Washington Post Magazine (8/3/97) (p.8)
http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/03/007l-080
397-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Satellites
Description: The new space race is on. Billions of dollars are being
invested launching satellites for global communications. It's "the ultimate
egalitarian product," says cellular telephone billionaire Craig McCaw. "We
are granting people the right to interact with each other. This will have an
impact on central authorities."
Title: Top Regulatory Posts Remain Unfilled
Source: Washington Post (8/2/97) (A1)
http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/02/118l-0802
97-idx.html
Author: Cindy Skrzycki
Issue: Regulation
Description: Seven months into President Clinton's second term, only 63 of
109 top level jobs in independent regulatory agencies are filled. Fifteen
nominees are awaiting Senate confirmation and the White House must still
nominate 31 more. These agencies are responsible for the day-to-day work of
the government including making policy decisions and issuing rules on a wide
variety of health, safety, environment, workplace, telecommunications, and
business issues. At the Federal Communications Commission, one seat has been
vacant for over a year, there are two "holdover" commissioners, and the
chairman is awaiting confirmation of his successor so he can resign.
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* Universal Service *
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Title: Missouri Becomes 30th State to Adopt FCC's School Universal Service
Discount
Source: Telecom AM http://www.telecommunications.com/omaha/am/article/970804.8
Issue: Universal Service
Description: The Missouri Public Service Commission The Missouri commission
"finds that it is in the public interest to take whatever action is
necessary to enable Missouri schools and libraries to participate in the
benefits of the federal Universal Service Fund." Missouri joins 29 other
states in approving the Federal Communications Commission's discount matrix.
[For more information on telecommunications in Missouri, see
http://www.benton.org/Library/State/missouri.html]
Title: Idaho Seeks Comments On How To Make Universal Service Subsidies Explicit
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/omaha/am/article/970804.13
Issue: Universal Service
Description: The Idaho Public Utilities Commission is seeking comment on how
to identify, measure, and modify implicit universal service subsidies in the
state. Under a 1997 state law that brings Idaho in line with the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Commission must identify and quantify
subsidies and propose a mechanism to remove implicit subsidies and make the
explicit. Comments are du August 8; replies are due August 22. [For more
information on telecommunications in Idaho, see
http://www.benton.org/Library/State/idaho.html]
*********************************************
* On Capitol Hill *
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Title: Budget bill brings broadcasters benefits
Source: Broadcasting&Cable http://www.broadcastingcable.com/(p.14)
Author: Paige Albiniak
Issue: Budget Issues
Description: Broadcasters had extra reason to cheer last week's budget
agreement. Buried in the massive bill are provisions that "will help secure
broadcasters' analog and digital future in television." The return of analog
channels will be delayed until 85% of a station's viewers can receive its
digital service either off the air or through satellite or cable TV. The
bill also relaxes ownership restrictions so that a station in a large market
may keep its digital channel and bid for one of the returned analog channels
in the same market. "i would have wanted to see a more reasonable standard
where it was more likely than not that the spectrum would be given back,"
said Media Access Project's Gigi Sohn. "The notion that this protects the
consumer is a lot of bunk." [For more information see
http://www.essential.org/map/plain/plainprogram/digitaltv/index.html or
http://www.benton.org/Policy/TV/]
Title: Encryption: Who Will Hold the Key?
Source: Washington Post (WashTech p.15)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/04/011l-080497-idx.html
Author: Elizabeth Corcoran
Issue: Encryption/Privacy
Description: In a world where information is increasingly becoming gold,
encryption is the way to protect it. Two bills are moving through Congress
on the matter. One, from the House, champions loosening existing
restrictions. The other, from the Senate, promotes a plan to provide law
enforcement agencies with "spare keys" to unlock scrambled information. [see
http://www.cdt.org/ for more information]
Title: Arts Funds As Catalyst In Heartland
Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/arts/nea-heartland.html(B1)
Author: Irvin Molotsky
Issue: Arts
Description: Although the majority of National Endowment of the Arts grants
go to "the Coasts," the biggest impact if it was closed would be in smaller
communities in the middle of the country. "geographic isolation is the
greatest threat to the arts in the United States," says a director from
Iowa. The end of the NEA would add to that isolation. [For more information
on the Arts see http://www.openstudio.org/]
Title: Congress Can Reform -- Honest
Source: Washington Post (A19)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/04/032l-080497-
idx.html
Author: Reps. Asa Hutchinson (R-AK) and Tom Allen (D-Maine),
co-chairs Bipartisan Freshman Campaign Finance Reform Task Force
Issue: Campaign Fiance Reform
Description: Freshmen Members of Congress are working hard to reform
campaign finances. They have come up with the Bipartisan Campaign Integrity
Act of 1997 that would ban "soft money" contributions, tighten candidate
disclosure rules, and require third-party, "issue advocacy" radio and
television advertisements. The bill's aim is to restore the public's faith
in political institutions and elected officials.
Title: FCC May Try to Fix Campaign Financing
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(A1)
Author: Alan Murray
Issue: Campaign Fiance Reform/Free Time for Candidates/Digital TV
Description: In the next few weeks, the Federal Communications Commission
plans to issue a Notice of Inquiry on the public interest obligations of
digital TV broadcasters. Broadcasters got a huge gift from the public this
year -- free spectrum to make the transition to digital TV -- and now we'll
explore what broadcasters must give back in return. Free time for political
candidates is high on the list for FCC Chairman Reed Hundt: "Making
available a sufficient amount of TV time for candidates would address the
single greatest contributor to the spiraling cost of running for office.
Public servants should not be consumed by chasing money to pay for access to
public property." President Clinton has also created an Advisory Committee
to make recommendations on digital TV broadcasters' public interest obligations.
Title: Imagine a Lobbyist Who Won't Play Golf
Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/080497lobbying.html(D3)
Author: Dan Carney
Issue: Lobbying
Description: Lobbyists for technology companies are priding themselves on
their frugality: "We don't do golf. We don't take people to the Kennedy
Center." And they don't have grand offices. But these companies are seeing
the list of Washington issues they are interested in growing. They include
preventing telephone companies from charging access fees for Internet use,
digital TV compatibility, encryption, copyright law, and -- everyone's
favorite -- the budget deal (and how to make it friendly to tech companies).
*********************************************
* Old vs. New Media *
*********************************************
Title: Even Before Books
Source: Washington Post (A18)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/04/021l-080497-
idx.html
Author: WP Editorial Staff
Issue: Old vs. New Media
Description: Amazon.com, the online bookstore, is getting a lot of attention
because of the online writing contest with John Updike. But the round-robin
writing style isn't new, its an old campfire game. The Internet is proving a
medium for reviving older enjoyments of the past -- like letter writing.
Title: Fast Times at Wired Hit a Speed Bump
Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/080497wired.html(D1)
Author: Amy Harmon
Issue: Magazines
Description: The mainstream media have adopted many of the "ideas about the
emerging technosociety that Wired was first to herald." Now the magazine
must make the leap from "culture to commerce" and decide if they the same
people who got it started are right for the transition. "The people who are
brilliant at starting these things are not necessarily the people who should
take it into the stage of growth that Wired is at," said MIT's Nicholas
Negroponte.
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* Business *
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Title: Watch 800 Companies Stuff Themselves Into One Phone Booth
Source: New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/phone-profits.html (D1)
Author: Seth Schiesel
Issue: Competition/Long Distance
Description: Since long distance deregulation in 1984, 800 companies have
entered the market draining AT&T's market share and prices down. The top six
long distance carriers have seen declines in their net incomes for the past
two quarters.
Title: On-Line Larceny Prompts Venture To Develop Lucrative New Business
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(A11A)
Author: Lisa Bransten
Issue: Online Commerce
Description: The Great American Success Story meets the Information Age. Two
guys have a great idea: sell software over the Internet. Sales boom, BUT
most are done with fraudulent credit cards and the sellers are responsible,
not the credit card company. Build a better mousetrap that filters out bad
guys. Fraudulent sales drop from over 50% to less that .5% of sales. Guys
start selling better mouse trap.
Title: With USA Network Up For Grabs, Heat Is on Its Chief
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(B1)
Author: Eben Shapiro
Issue: Ownership
Description: Cable TV's USA Network, the object of a fierce legal battle
between Seagram's Universal Studio's and Viacom, is redoing its schedule in
hopes of adding ratings and ad dollars. Industry rumors have the legal
battle ending soon with Universal taking over the network. Seagram's Frank
Biondi has had harsh words for USA's management team and is said to be
seeking a new top level executive.
Title: Library Manager LSSI Adds a Calif. System to Its Collection
Source: Washington Post (WashBusiness p.10)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-08/04/007l-080497-
idx.html
Author: Richard Drezen
Issue: Libraries
Description: Library Systems and Services (LSSI) of Germantown, Maryland now
runs the Riverside, California public library system. LSSI's COO said,
"We're a company of librarians and we've served the library community for
more than 16 years. We're going to use existing staff and our people,
experience and resources to make Riverside County Free Library System a
showplace for public/private partnerships." LSSI streamlines administrative
procedures so libraries can serve their communities will longer hours of
basic service. Eleanor Jo Rodger, president of the Urban Libraries Council,
stresses that "outsourcing is not about libraries. Its about local
governments trying to contain costs."
[For more on libraries see
http://www.benton.org/Library/Kellogg/buildings.html and
http://www.benton.org/Library/Libraries/]
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* International *
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Title: The Price of Truth
Source: New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/(A19)
Author: Anthony Lewis
Issue: Journalism
Description: The American press may think they have it bad -- large damages
in libel and other legal actions, Government blocks to information, an
unloving public -- but its nothing compared to what's happening around the
world, especially Latin America. Over the past ten years, 173 Latin
journalists have been murdered and many of the cases have never been solved.
Title: Ancient Spanish Town Becomes Infoville
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(A9B)
Author: Carlta Vitzthum
Issue: International
Description: Villena (population 31,000) is Spain's first cybervillage. More
than 2,000 families have signed up for IBM personal computers, software and
free training. They also get free maintenance, a help desk, and an ISDN
connection to a mainframe computer in nearby Valencia. Each participant pays
92,000 pesetas (~$595) some of which has been underwritten by soft loans
from local banks. Most of the $12 million program is funded by IBM and
Telefonica de Espana SA.
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Sleep well, Bill.